Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) has revealed that it has received eight applications, all from men, for its top chief executive officer role.

The successful applicant will be in charge of managing the Government Pension Fund Global (GPFG).

The application deadline for the role was 21 February 2020 and Norges Bank is now proceeding with the recruitment process.

Of the eight that have applied, one has requested to be exempt from public disclosure. Of the remaining seven candidates, five reside in Norway, one in Singapore and one in the UK.

The seven are Thorbjorn Gaarder, Jake Tai, Willy Yngvar Andersen, Pål Renli, Anders Halberg, Olav Bø and Trond Grande. The age range of the applicants is 30 to 64 (not including the undisclosed applicant).

It was announced that current CEO, Yngve Slyngstad, would be stepping down from the role overseeing the NOK 10trn fund in October 2019. He will stay on until his successor is appointed.

Once a new chief executive is in place, Slyngstad will focus on developing NBIM’s investment strategy with an emphasis on building a specific allocation to unlisted renewable energy infrastructure assets.

He has led the fund – the largest in Europe and one of the largest asset owners in the world – since 2008, having joined NBIM in 1998 as head of equities. Prior to joining NBIM he was CIO for Asian equities at Storebrand Asset Management.

Under Slyngstad’s leadership, the GPFG grew from NOK2.3trn in 2008 to hit NOK10trn earlier this month. It hit the $1trn mark in September 2017, the first sovereign wealth fund to do so.

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